Osun

Oluwo Asks FG To Ban Foreign Jeans, Promote Local Fabrics

ByOlamilekan Adigun

PublishedJanuary 27, 2026

The Oluwo of Iwoland, Oba Abdulrosheed Akanbi, has asked the federal government to consider an outright ban on foreign jeans to promote local fabrics and boost Nigeria’s economy.

Oluwo lamented the infiltration of religion into our cultural values most especially the Yorubas, saying traditional rulers have roles to play in distinctly differentiating Yoruba culture from religion.

According to a statement by the monarch’s spokesperson, Alli Ibrahim, Oba Akanbi expressed displeasure over lumping the rich Yoruba culture with idolatry, saying no enlightened person will embrace scaring religion.

The monarch explained that he had earlier discussed a partnership deal with the Bank of Industry (BOI) but not yielded as expected.

He expressed the hope in the federal government’s involvement to embrace and domesticate the production of various dresses such as suits, jeans and Agbada with local Ofi.

Oba Akanbi explained that the youths and teenagers could not be forced to start wearing Aso Oke unless the fabric was sewn to suit their needs.

The monarch said, “I want to task the federal government to outrightly ban the importation of foreign jeans into Nigeria, promote local jeans made of Ofi to aid job opportunities and advantages.

“It is about using our own fabrics to make clothes of Western dresses which our kids like. You must think like the children and the youths if you want to influence them in any way.

“We cannot compel our youths and teenagers to start wearing agbada made of Aso Oke or Aso Ofi. But now I have branded our Aso Oke as Telu Jeans and Telu Jeans are normal jeans trousers, shorts and jackets made of Aso Oke

“Our traditional clothes and accessories, such as Ofi and beads are demonstration of rich culture and luxuries of wealth. So enticing and admiring but because a people affiliated with wearing Ofi and using some cultural accessories as paganism, our children begin to run away from it

“You only see a Yoruba child wearing Ofi and using beads at either wedding or naming ceremony. You can’t see Alfa or Pastor wearing Ofi or using beads at the mosque or Church. Why?”

“I will lead the struggle to clean our culture and promote cultural accessories. I will provide technical requirements to assist the government in the actualisation of the dream

“Aso Oke will also be used to sew suits and all office, school and religious wears. This will increase the demand for this local fabric and create jobs for our people who are weavers. It will also promote our culture and we will spend less money on importation of foreign clothes.

“It is about using our own fabrics to make clothes that the Western world likes. You must think like the children and the youths if you want to influence them in any way.

“As traditional rulers, we have the role of clearly differentiating between the rich Yoruba culture and religion. The infiltration is scary to our children. The culture has been lumped with traditional religion. It is disheartening. Our culture is clean. It has to be promoted and clearly distinguished to make it adorable and admirable to our generations,” Oluwo added.

Olamilekan Adigun

Olamilekan Adigun is a graduate of Mass Communication with years of experience in journalism embedded in uncovering human interest stories. He also prioritises accuracy and factual reportage of issues.